Vulcanizing press



`Dec. 9, 1930. I B. BRoNsoN vULcANIzI'NG PRESS x-*iled Nov. 1, 1927 4 sheets-sheet 1 \\\\m\f\w\\\\w\\\\\\\\\\\\\\w M j V/ MyW/w f//////////////////////////////////////////////WM//// Dec. 9, 1930.

if I? B. BRONSON vULcANIzING PRESS Filed Nov. 1, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 B. BRONSON VULCANIZING PRESS Filed NOV. l, 1927 Dec. 9, 1930.

4 Sheets-Sheet 44 attenua.,

Patented Dec. 9, 1930 *l narran .STATES PATEN'I; orrlcaf,

Bunn BnoNsoN, or LAKEWoon, oHIo, AssIGNoB, Vrro 'man oHIo RUBBER COMPANY,

F CLEVELAND, OHIi-ACORPORATION '0F OHIO vULoAN'IzINe PRESS Application ined November 1,1927'. serial No'. 'asomav Y rlhis invention relatesto ag-vulcanizing press adapted for vulcanizing rubber to 'AmetaL i y y The chief object ofthe invention is'to provide a press 'suitable' for molding and vulcanizing rubber in sheet form onto relatively large sheet metaly members, as, for eX* ample, runningboardbodies, which may be flanged at their margins, depending upon the' nature 'or purpose of the completedarticle, and which may have two-angularly disposed portions such as the top and front which yare adapted to have the rubber fastened and vul- Y canized thereto and at the same time molded l .tothe proper configuration and shape.

Another object/of the invention'is to provide a press which has a large capacity and which causes'the rubber to be vulcanizedand effectively secured to running board bodies or 'other metal members of more or less slmilar nature. y

A further object is to provide a construction wherein the rubber is Vproperly molded and causedto be vulcanized and effectively secured to angularly disposed portions of the I kmetalbody, which'portions may be at right y angles to each other.

A stillfurther object is to secure the mold Amembers to platens of the press ina manner `such V,as to admit of their quick 4and easy removal or replacementif for any reason, as

for the purpose of repairs, it may be desirable to remove lor change the molds A still further object is to provide a construction which. admits ofrapid unloading of the press, this feature having particular reference to presses for molding and vulcanizing rubber to flanged memberswhich under the severe pressure of the press have their fianges driven into receiving slots of one mold member, this part of my invention serving to pull the flanges .from the slots and therefore overcome the tight engagement between the metal and the, moldmember.

The above and other objects are attained by my invention which may be here briefly summarized as consisting in certain novel details of' construction and combinations and arrangement-s ofr parts which 4will be dewherein Iy have p bodiment of'- my invention, Fig. 1 isa sectional yview showmgjuxtaposed portions ofthe upperand` lower mold members of a vulcanizf ing press adapted in this particular instance for molding andvulcanizing rubber to sheet metal runningboard bodies; Fig. 2 isa plan view'of oneof the running boards;v Fig.y 3` `is an enlarged detail sectional view showing `how the rubber not only covers the ltopbutv and set forth is extended down for 5a distance over the front .of the running boardbody; Fig. 1 is a plan viewofl the lowermold member which is adapted to be secured toa platen of the press ,Fig 5l is an enlarged partial longitudinal sectional`view,the section being taken substantially along the line 5\5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a transversesectional view onthe same .scale asin Fig.- 5, the section being takensubstantially,along the liner6-6 of Fig. et; Fig. 7 is a bottom viewfof the upper mold member, thesame `being secured to a platen of the press; Fig. 8 Ais a side view of the platen having secured to oppositesidesthere- `of the lower mold member of' onemolol and the upper mold member of anothermold, the

press which I employ being preferably of the multi-platen type with the -platens arranged one above the other;`Figs. 9 and 10 are face views of portions ofthe upperA and lower AmembersV respectively of the mold showing the application' of 'lifting hooks for lifting from the lower mold members the completed articlesV as themold members separate following the `vulcanizing operation,.Figs. 11 and 12are enlarged detailv sectional views, one section being at right'angles to the other, and both "showing the lifting hooks, Fig. 13 is a Vfragmentary topplanview'showing the cornerbf the upper'mold, member attached tothe platen; and'Fig. 14 is a detail perspective view showing a portion of the end plate for holding the mold .member tothe platen.

rlhe general type of press to which I prefer to apply the various features of my invention is old and well known, this consisting of a series of superposed platens to the upper and lower faces of which mold members are adapted to. be applied, formingl a Series of molds.' The press is opened andclosedby a hydraulic plunger, the platens being slidable on fixed rods between a fixed abutment at the l mold to be opened and the remainder in suc.-

cession. However, 'If'do not limit my invention to a press of this type'andfl refer to this press becauseit is vused by me in practice. Furthermore, for .the purpose of obtaining the :desired capacity,'each mold is preferably of the multiple type iii thesense'thatit ac commodates sideby side a plurality of members vto be vulcanized, butlfdo not regard n the ruiming board tightly yinto'the slots of lthis ,feature as "essential to my invention thoughlpreferable as' Ato 'certain features or pliasesthereof, as'will be explained pres.- 'entlyf' iY Referring now to the'drawings, the plateiis are` designated 10, two of these being shown in Fig. 1 in superposed relation. v'On adjavcent faces of the platens the upper and lower members of the moldor' of la" plurality of 'molds Hare provided. In this instance two molds are provided on the adj acent'` faces'of each pair of platens. `For a purposeito be explained presently, the upper halves ofthe mold include' twoseparate laterally movable inol'd plates 11 each having secured thereto a mold member 12, while the lower halves. of the'molds are composed of a mold plate 13 to which are ,securedl infixed y'position two mold members 14, the plate 13 being held in fixed position on the platenf 1 i i Although the invention is not necessarily confined 'to a rulcanizing pressfor producing rubbercoveredrunning boards, the molds 'hereshown are designed for that purpose, and inFigs. 1,2and3 the'frunnifng" boardjis illustrated. rlhis running board is provided with a sheetmetal body 15;w ith flanges 16 extendingy down from the four sides, and it is provided with' a covering of rubber 17 `lwhich overlies the major portion v,of thetop surface of the running board vbody a'iidhas a lip or Vextension 1,7EL covering thermajor portion of the front fiange'of the running'board body. ilith this press the rubber is molded ontothe running board body and Ivulcanized Vin contact -therewithl` is held in place Vnoto'nly bythe adherenceof the rubber `.tol/the top surfacek and front portion Vof the running board ,body Vbut itis locked thereto preferably by the .equivalent of rivets of rubber 18 freed er assessing: the! unarmed rubber through openings provided in the running board body and causing' the lower ends of the rubber lugs to be expanded on the lower or inner side of the running board body, as best illustrated in Fig. 3. In order that this might be done, the top face of each lower mold member 14 is provided withl depressions to accommodate the rubber to form the rivet heads. The rubber may be given any suitable co1i figuration 'on itstop surface, but in this instance itis shownV as ribbed, this being pro- ,vided by giving the lower side of the upper mold member 12 a corresponding configuration.k y Y l y ,By Vreference to Figs. 1 and 4, it will be seenthat the front fiange 'of .the ruiming Vboardbodyis adaptedrtofbear against the iiiiier upright face of the lower mold member 14 wliilevvtheend and rearflanges are adapted to be driven down rintjoslots 19 formed in the mold member 14. (See Fig. 4.) As the ,pressure exerted on the b oard when the press closes is lvery severe, this drives the flanges of the moldfniemben Vmaking advisable the use oflifting hoolrswhichblv will describe presently.I Y i The upper 'mold meinber'l has a horizontalportion whichforms or molds the portion ofthe rubbercovering 17 overlying the' top of the running board body, thus providing the ribso'ry other conguration which the rubber coveredytop of the running board is to have.j Additionally,tlie upper mold member 12 has a substantially 'right angular extension 12a, the face 12b of which is adapted to' engageiand moldthe rubber coveringfto the front flangelo the running'boaid body and' to secure 'it tothe iiange. There -is a 'fillet .or

rounded portion joining the main :portion l2 andthe extension 1 2A of the mold member so that the" rubber covered angle between .the

top vand rQnt of therunniiig board will be rounded, asilliistratediiiFigs. 1 and'. The

face 12?"of the-extensionA 12., i. e., ,theffaceremote frQn theliilld .member 13,: iSY 011 a. taper. as .Clearly showin Fis- 1.-. AssimiinN that. there v .are tir @t the, 'mold ou 'the' lower face of the upper members "12' platemboth wiil bezsimilarly constructed,y aiidnormaly when thev press is open lthese tivo mold inefmber's occupy substantially lthe relative'positions indicated in l1,'tlie adv jacent oi" contiguous'cdgrsoi the inoldplates 1'1" and of the mold member "l2 being' adjacent each" other but b eiiig'spacedl apartdby suitable stops'tZD, note Fig. l. 'They are held in this-position when the press is openby springsv 21, note particularly 'F ig. f', 1which springs,y their-"free ends' engage the outer "edgesfofj the moldplates 11 andfhavetheir youterl endssec'ured in spring blocks 22 which vare suitablyr secured to the platen-adjacent the .outer corners thereof.y

nfoidr; thatgtlie rubberwhichis adapted .that the faces 12b of the mold member extensions 12 may become effective. This is accomplished by providing on the lower mold plate 13 centrally with respect to the two upper mold members 12 a wedge strip 23 L whose opposite sides are tapered in accordance with the taper on lthe faces 12c of the mold member extensions 12a. VThe parts are so arranged and proportioned that as the press closes a pressure is exerted laterally on `the front portions of the running board bodies overhanging the inner edges of the mold members 14C substantially equal to that fexerted downward on top of the running board. In thisway the entire rubber coverl ing, i. e., that over the top and that extending over the front side of th-e running board, is securely and uniformly applied. The lateral wedging action which takes place just as the press closes does not prevent the application of a ribbed configuration to the top of the rubber covering northe provision of a more or less thickened rib aroundthe margin of the top rubber surface as the ribbing is not of any considerable depth.

As the press closes, the superposed pairs .ofV mold members arepreferably,aligned by dowels 24, note Figs. and 8,'which in this instance are arranged on the upper mold plates 11 and are adapted to engage into openings in the lower mold plate 13. The

dowel pins are sufficiently tapered so that they do not interfere with the lateral movement which is imparted to theupper mold members 12 and the corresponding mold plates 11, but they do come 'into close engagement with the walls of the dowel pin openings in the companion member'at sub`- stantially the instant that the closing movement terminates, in fact they may be utilized to assist the wedge strip 23 in imparting the lateral movement to the upper Amold members 12. and centralize or align the parts in casethe wedge strip 23ldoes not entirely perform this function becauser of wear.

The upper mold plates 11` and the mold members 12 secured thereto are held ontothe lower side of the platen 10 by end plates these end )lates beine-secured b*- screws tol the top face of the platen at the ends thereof and both the plates 25 and the ends of the mold plates 11 have overlapping notched portions so that the end plates retain the upper mold plates against the lower side of the platen and where they overlap the ends of the mold plates they form guideways for the lat eral movement thereof, i. e., the inward movement by the springs 21 when the press opens and the outwardv movement as they are wedged apart on the closure of `the press. The upper mold plates 13 and the upper mold members 14 are secured at their ends to the upper side of theplatenby.somewhat simi'- lar end plates26 and these endv plates and the upper meld plate also have notched overlapping portionsor overlapping flanges,but in this case the en dA plates hold the mold platen. They are held from sliding out beneath the end plates by 'holding bloclrs27 (see Fig. lll) which fit under the overhanging flanges of the end plates andare removablyfsecured in place. f it is desired to remove the upper mold members, this can be readily done by removingthe spring blocks 22 vholding the springs 21 and by sliding the upper mold plates with the mold members attached thereto laterally out from beneath the end plates 25. To .remove thefupper moldy plate and its mold members, `the vend blocks 27 are removed and the endplates 26 kare somewhat loosened whereupon the upper mold plate can beslid out from beneath the flanges of these-end plates.

plate tightly against-,the upper face of the One otherfeature remains to be described,

that being the means fory `facilitating the unloading of the press. s V

As Vpreviously stated, as `the press closes lthe flanges of therunning board bodies are driven intoqslots provided therefor inthe lower mold members. In manyV instances, therefore, difficulty is .encountered in freeing the running boards from the lower mold members when the press is opened; To overcome this disadvantage, I may and in some instances prefer` to provide lifting hooks which as the pressy opens automatically lift the running boards from the lower mold members, this part of the invention vbeing illustrated in Figs. 9 to 12 inclusive. 1 The lifting'hooks, which are designatec 30, are preferably provided on the upper mold member, two at each end of each upper mold. These lifting `hooks are mounted on pintles/Bl supported Ain brackets 32 secured to the upper mold members, and each hook has an elongated s101333 (note Fig. 11) which enables the hookto'rise and fall as the members ofthe press are relatively moved in opening and closing. On the lower `mold members recesses Stare provided to accomu;

they hang by gravity so that the noses of the hooks are voutwardly ofthe line ofthe lthat when they are suspended on the pins 31 l impart thereto an upward jerk which lifts the running board free ofthe lower mold member, and when the press is fully open lthe different running boards are suspended on the hooks between the upper and lower mold members. The operator then has simply to lift the running boards slightly to cause the hooks to swing outwardly by gravity and then may'move them laterally outward from beneath the mold members of the press. f In this way time is saved which might otherwise be` expended by the operator in prying the running boards loose, for practice has demonstrated that in. some `instances they stick tightly.

As previously stated, the invention is preferably applied to a multi-platen press, and vthere is provided between each pair of platens the equivalent of two complete molds. Accordingly, a press of this Vkind has large capacity, and by providing a battery of severalV of these presses a crew can be kept constantly engaged in loading andV unloading the presses that areopen while other presses are closed for the time required for vulcanization. In operation, the uncured rubberinsheet form is placed on the.` running board bodies so Yas to cover the portions of the top and front flangeV which are to vbe rubber covered. Then this running board with the rubber thereon is placed in the press and as the press closes the body of the running board is pressed down tightly against the' lower mold i member vand just beforev the final closing movement, the upper mold member is shifted laterallyby the wedgelblock or strip k23 so that the rubber is pressed against the front flange at the same time that it is Vpressed against the topk of the running board body, bothportions being molded and interlocked with the running board by means of the rivets 18 as well as by the adherence of the rubber tothe ruiming board body, which adherence takes place during the vulcanizing operation. After the press has been closed for a given time it is opened, and in opening the running boards .are lifted clear of theflower mold -member so that it can be quickly removed-in the manner explained, and at the same time the upper mold members under the action of the springs 21 automatically move inwardly toward each other so as to be positionedv properly for the nexyt'closing operation..

closingoperation as to engage and press be.

tween it and the other member the top and side of the metal body and secure the plastic material thereto.

2. A press for molding plastic material onto the top and side of a metal body comprising a pair of platens having upper and ylower mold members one of which is laterally movable and the other of which is fixed and adapted-to receive the metal body, means for wedging the laterally movable mold member laterally in the closing operation, both mold members having. angularly disposed working iortions which in the closing o erationl co-' operatetomold the plastic material and secure it to the top and side of the metal body. 3. A press .for"molding' plastic material onto angularly disposed portions of a metal body comprising a pair of platens having upper and lower mold members one of which is slidably supported for lateral movement and has angularly disposed working faces cooperating, with similarly disposed working portions of .the other which is fixed and adapted to receive the metal body, a spring for engaging the laterally movable mold member and normally serving to hold'it in a given position, and meansfor forcing the movable mold member laterally against the action of the spring while the pressis being closed to engage and press between 'it and the other member `the angularly disposed portions o'f the metal body.

4. In a press of the character described, a platen havingk a mold member carried thereby, en'd members on the platen and overlapping the ends of the mold member whereby the mold member is normally held to the face .of the platen and may be removed by sliding it laterallyfrom beneath the overlapping vportions of the end members.

5. In a press, `a pair of platens having mold members on their adjacent faces, end plates secured to the platens and overlapping the ends of both mold members whereby they may be removed by laterally moving the mold members from beneath the overlapping portions of the end plates, the end plates holding kone mold member securely to the platen, and the other mold member relatively loosely so it may be moved laterally when the platens are moved relatively.

' 6. A press of the character described comprising a pair of platens having mold members on adjacent faces thereof, the upper member having liftingv means adaptedto enzal) gageunder the member operated on in the press so as to lift itclear of the lower mold member as the press opens.

7 In a press of the character described',a

pair of relatively movable mold members,

the lower member being adapted to receive the work piece to be operated upon, andthe upper mold member having hooks'adapt'ed to engage under press closes, the lower member having means for movingV the hooks inwardly in the closing operation. v

8. A press of the character described, comprising a pair of relatively movable platens having cooperating mold members onV adjan cent faces thereof adapted toreceive therebetween a body to be operated upon, one of said members having means thereon adapted to be moved to position for engagement with thebody operated upon as the press closes and to separate said body from the other mold member as the press opens.

9. In a press for molding plastic material onto top and side portions lof metal bodies, a pair of upper and lower relativelymovable platens, one of said platens having fixed thereon a pair of mold members each having means for supporting top and side portions of a metal body and the other platen having p mounted thereon two separate mold members adapted to be moved laterally to cooperate with the Yfirst mentioned mold members in pressing therebetween the plastic material and said top and side portions of the metal bodies, means for moving said separate mold members toward each other when the press is being opened, and means for wedging said separate mold members apart and into cooperation with the first mentioned mold members when the press is being closed.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aiiix myV signature.

BUDD BRON SON the work piecewhen the 

